Inside the side hall, Song Yaozhu gathered her strength and shouted towards the door, "Assassins! Protect the Emperor!!!"

The sound ripped through the silence, and even Yuwen Wuji behind her was terrified. He immediately took a few steps back into the shadows and leaned his back against the wall.

Song Yaozhu immediately dodged away from the doorway, and a large group of guards rushed in, shouting, "Where is the assassin!"

Song Yaozhu pointed to the roof beam and said, "Up there! Up there! I heard the roof rattling!"

Before long, several guards immediately set up a human ladder and climbed onto the roof to observe the situation.

The Empress Dowager in the main hall was also alerted. Her nanny helped her out, where she saw the entire courtyard on high alert. On the roof of the side hall, a dozen or so guards leaped up, each carrying a knife and looking around in case an assassin suddenly appeared.

A series of thumping sounds came from behind them. The guards turned around and saw a swarm of rats!

The rats, biting the tails of the rats in front of them, ran swiftly along the roof beams.

The rats' red eyes were especially eerie in the darkness. Enraged, the guard raised his sword and slashed down. The rats scattered immediately at the sight. After several slashes, he hadn't hurt any of the rats, but unexpectedly, the old roof had a hole in it, and he fell into the room.

Inside the room, Song Yaozhu choked on a mouthful of dust. Looking at the guard who had fallen from the roof, she endured the pain with a ferocious expression and reported, "Your Majesty, it wasn't an assassin, it was a swarm of rats!"

Yuwen Wuji's face was gloomy. His gaze fell on Song Yaozhu's face, where she looked both frightened and embarrassed, clutching a handkerchief and shrinking behind the door, looking extremely frightened.

For a moment, he had no idea what the woman was thinking.

Was she unaware of her own purpose, or did she figure it out and do it on purpose?

Regardless of what happened, he will not achieve his goal today.

Yuwen Wuji flicked his sleeve and said, "The Princess Consort of Xiaoyao was eager to protect the Emperor and deserves a reward. You may leave!"

The guards were relieved, but since the side hall was no longer habitable, they arranged for it to be cleaned up.

Song Yaozhu, looking quite startled, stepped forward, bowed, and took her leave, carrying the reward with her.

The Dowager Princess patted the arm of the old woman supporting her and said, "Great wisdom appears as foolishness!"

The old woman was puzzled.

As Song Yaozhu left the courtyard, Granny Qin hurriedly came to greet her with Caijin and Caiyin. Song Yaozhu's legs gave way and she collapsed, only to be supported by Caijin and Caiyin.

"princess!"

Song Yaozhu whispered, "Hurry up, hurry up!"

Cai Jin and Cai Yin suddenly realized what was happening and quickly helped Song Yaozhu away.

Just then, Xie Liwei came over. Upon seeing this, Xie Liwei stepped forward and, without waiting for Song Yaozhu to speak, picked her up in his arms.

Song Yaozhu was surprised and subconsciously raised her arm to hug his neck. Her gaze fell on his lips, which were dry and chapped from the hardships he had endured in the examination hall for several days. Even after two days, they still didn't look very good.

Thinking of that kiss that wasn't really a kiss earlier today, Song Yaozhu's Adam's apple bobbed. She looked away, secretly feeling ashamed of herself.

What is she thinking right now? Has she been tempted by beauty before she could even finish her revenge?

The key point is, you can't eat this beauty!

Her morality wouldn't allow it!

The thought that Xie Liwei might actually have feelings for her that he shouldn't have made Song Yaozhu feel quite strange. She was destined not to reciprocate his feelings.

If he doesn't have someone he loves, it's fine for them to live together as a couple. But if they love each other...

Just thinking about it makes her scalp tingle!

She admitted that Xie Liwei was one of the best men out there. Besides, he was someone she knew very well, so his behavior was inevitably a bit unrestrained. Sometimes he wanted to take advantage of his younger brother, but that was a completely different matter from being taken advantage of by his brother!

No, she had to put an end to Xie Liwei's thoughts.

She reached out and shoved Xie Liwei, her tone rather cold: "Put me down."

"There are the emperor's men behind him."

Song Yaozhu stopped talking and was carried back to her room by him.

With her feet on the ground, Song Yaozhu said seriously, "Your Highness is quite adept at doing things that are indecent to women."

Xie Liwei frowned slightly, wondering if she was angry about him kissing her.

"I am here to help you out of this predicament."

"Oh, Your Highness, without an explanation, I really couldn't tell." Who disappeared as soon as they finished eating!

Thinking about it, it's his fault. Knowing that the dog was lusting after her, he still left her while the dog was still around, which shows that he didn't care about her at all!

Wait, that's not right, that's not the way to go.

Xie Liwei gazed at her face, seemingly able to see through what she was thinking. He gently coaxed her, "My cousin is looking for me tonight. From now on, I will never leave you when he is around."

Just imagine how terrified she must have been, a woman facing an old man with ill intentions towards her. It was his fault for not keeping a close eye on her, leaving her to face that disgusting Yuwen Wuji alone.

Song Yaozhu pursed her lips. Her original intention was to take the opportunity to have a falling out with Xie Liwei and cut off his feelings for her. But why did it feel like she was about to be coaxed back by him?

Does she not even know she's so easy to please?

"You sleep in the outer room!"

Song Yaozhu turned her face away, ignoring him, and asked Caiyin to prepare water for her to wash her feet. In her heart, however, she wondered if Xie Liwei might mistakenly believe that she also had feelings for him, since she had forgiven him so easily.

It's true that I have feelings for him, but they're just like siblings!

How could he kiss himself! It's all his fault! He made what was a perfectly good working relationship so complicated!

Caiyin carried the foot-washing water in and out again. Outside, Granny Qin rubbed her hands and asked her, "How is it?"

"The princess is ignoring the prince!" she said, describing the situation inside the room.

Granny Qin sighed and then bowed in the direction of the main hall.

"Bodhisattva, if you truly grant our wish, please bless our prince so that he may soon have a son!"

I don't understand why the prince and princess are asking the matchmaker. Shouldn't they ask the god of marriage for help? If the prince and princess could understand each other sooner, the little prince wouldn't be far away!

After washing up, Song Yaozhu was about to go to bed when she entered the inner room and saw an oil paper package on the table.

She walked over with a puzzled look, opened it, and found a roasted rabbit leg.

......

She quickly cleaned it up; how could such greasy stuff appear in a sacred Buddhist temple!

But thinking that Xie Liwei, that scoundrel, even knew to bring some food for himself when he went out for a stroll, he snorted and walked to the dressing table, picked up a small box, and went out.

Xie Liwei was anxiously worried that she was angry when he saw her come out in a rage, stand in front of him, and lift his chin with her hand.

Xie Liwei stiffened. Just as he was about to move, he heard Song Yaozhu say coldly, "Don't move!"

Xie Liwei's heart skipped a beat. His dark eyes were fixed on her face, and his hands, hanging down, were gathering strength, afraid that she would remove his mask at this moment.

Song Yaozhu opened the lipstick box and used her fingertip to apply a small amount to his lips. The faint floral scent of the lipstick wafted into Xie Liwei's nostrils, and the cool touch of her fingertip was distinctly felt on his lips. A tingling sensation indeed spread from his tailbone and quickly spread throughout his body.

His dry lips were quickly coated with a thin layer of oil, making them appear as red as blood under the light.

Song Yaozhu looked away and placed the cosmetic box on the table.

"Remember to apply it yourself."

After saying that, she turned around and went into the house in a huff, but unexpectedly, Xie Liwei reached out and grabbed her wrist.